


The Redeemers

by Missy



Category: The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.
Genre: Bank Robbery, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Humor, Old Friends, Redemption, Second Chances, Surprises, Villains to Heroes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-18
Updated: 2014-06-18
Packaged: 2018-02-05 03:03:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1802992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missy/pseuds/Missy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dixie gets mixed up in a bank robbery and is forced to work with an old foe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Redeemers

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DesertScribe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DesertScribe/gifts).



> Written for DesertScribe for Night on Fic Mountain! Thank you to RedFiona for her beta work!

There’s something about this hot, rich, sun-blessed California earth that makes a woman a queen. Dixie firmly believed that the culture’s what makes the lady - that her fortunes, misfortunes and follies had shaped her into an iron fist in a lace-covered glove. She was proud as ever to be a Californian, even when the road stretched out before her for miles like a dry-bellied snake. 

At the end of the line there was always a new gig, and for that she remained ever grateful. Though, she thought winsomely as she disembarked from the noon stage to Grey Harbor, she’d rather be an ice cube in a freezebox than spend another hour cooped up in that dusty coach. It was mid-July, after all, and even steel magnolias wilt when you get them hot enough. Alighting at the station, she composed herself quickly in the reflection of a shop window before meeting with the attaché the theatre had sent for her.

She found her standing in the shade right by the mercantile shop at the head of the train station, beside a wagon painted green and blue and bearing the logo of the casino she’d been booked by. A nervous-looking woman shifted back and forth, holding a sign made of butcher’s paper in shaking hands – then she took it upon herself to start dragging Dixie’s trunks over to the wagon despite her nerves. “Did you have a good trip, Miss Cousins? Do you need anything Miss Cousins? Do you want to have dinner before the show?”

“Easy, honey,” Dixie retorts, stooping to reach for the handle. “You’ll tie your tongue up in knots. All I need is to get to the hotel. “

The woman stood straight upright, clearly embarrassed. “I’m so sorry. We never get performers of your caliber in town,” she explained. “I’m so excited to meet you.”

“Always happy to meet a fan. Especially one with a nice grip.”

“Ooop!” She squatted once more, and between the two of them got Dixie’s trunk into the wagon on their own. Then they piled into the safety of the wagon and together made the journey to the hotel.

Dixie didn’t take too long to notice their final destination as her temporary assistant drove them through a dusty street teeming with cowhands, old ladies and meandering families. From three blocks away she could already see the hotel standing at the foot of the town’s main artery, rising up before her tired eyes like a star-spangled mountain. It was a brand new multi-level establishment, with rooms on the fifth and sixth floors, a restaurant on the third, and a fine theatre on the fourth. There she’d been invited to sing at the opening of the Oriole, the Heart and Soul of Grey Harbor, or so the press information has trumpeted. 

An opening night like this would tear a normal performer into ribbons. But Dixie had developed an iron-cast stomach; she’d been through tougher situations. Opening a brand-new theatre in a rough frontier town was just the sort of challenge Dixie adored, one that was loaded with promise. Opening up a brand-new arena and entertaining a boatload of faces she’d never before encountered seemed something of a good luck charm, especially after China. The assistant drove her wagon up to the back of the hotel, and Dixie disembarked while she headed to the kitchen door and called for a bell hop. Hands on her hips, Dixie surveyed the dirt brown building with its glimmer before her curiosity was sated. She heard the men grunt over her trunk and told them not to hurt themselves.

Up two flights of wooden stairs and one of marble she found her dressing room, marked with a large brass star. The woman unlocked it and ushered Dixie inside. 

“This’ll do just fine,” Dixie said, then tipped the two bellhops as they delivered her trunk. 

“Are you sure we can’t get you anything?” worried the assistant. 

“A songbird like me doesn’t need anything fancy to get her started.” She popped the locks on the trunk and withdrew four of her stage costumes, laying them out upon a hook attached to her changing screen. “When’s showtime?”

“Two hours,” she smiled eagerly.

“Good. Get me a small steak, some potatoes and a salad. Nothing too fancy, don’t worry yourself over it.”

“Yes Miss Cousins!” The woman mentally took note of the order while Dixie went about arranging her sleeping clothes. The suite was tiny but it and its luxuries would do for the week.

“And a bottle of champagne – and any chocolate you can find – and a small pot of hot tea. I don’t care about what’s in it – I just need it to be hot.” She gently shoed the girl toward the door. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need a little shut-eye before I perform. A lady needs her beauty rest.” 

“Oh, Miss Cousins, you couldn’t possibly need beauty sleep!” gushed the girl.

“Flattery’ll get you a lot of places,” Dixie deadpanned. “Just not this room. Y’scat now.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

Blessedly alone, and cool for the first time in weeks, Dixie treated herself to a long bath before falling into a deep, untroubled sleep. 

The food was still warm and waiting for her when she woke up. A catlike smile brightened her features as she took the tray inside. The perfect service and the well-appointed accommodations had convinced her that attending the opening had been the right choice.

*** 

This was the worst decision she’d ever made in her life. 

While the theatre had been beautiful, the crowd had been sparse for both shows. She spent her days writing letters, exploring the town, eating, and resting under the enormous circular fan in her room. As much as she’d yearned for a little stability in her life, this sort of inertia was enough to make her wish for the big, blue skies hanging over the dirt road back home. 

When her run reached its end, she rushed to find her assistant and collect her take, only to discover her teary-eyed and tremulous down in the lounge. 

“Did you have the fish?” Dixie probed.

The woman blew her nose into her napkin. “I’m so sorry, Miss Dixie. Your money’s locked up in the bank and I forgot to withdraw it this morning.” She stood from the table. “Would you mind waiting for me here?”

“Oh, is that all?” She awkwardly wrapped an arm around the girl’s shoulder. “Don’t cry, honey! I’ll come with you....I just realized I never did get your name.” Which was a bad PR move if there ever was.

“Juliet,” the girl said, tensing in her arms. “The bank’s across the street, two doors down. I’ll lead you there.” She pulled away from Dixie and headed toward the front door of the bar.

Dixie shrugged off the woman’s brittleness. She couldn’t blame Juliet for being so angry after her long week playing helpmeet. She followed behind, entering the grey, austere interior of the bank in record time. 

The process to the head of the line was slow, but she stuck behind Juliet right until they reached the end. By then the place was nearly deserted. She reached for her purse and rested it upon the teller’s window – and when she caught sight of the man’s face it was quite the shock, for even with his tied-back blond hair and distracted manner he was quite a familiar face.

“Welcome to the twenty-third International Bank…” his startled eyes focused on her. “Dixie?”

And for the first time in her life, Dixie was stunned into quiet incredulous. “Sweet hell, what are you doing here Pete Hutter?” she blurted out.

Then from the doorway came a shout. “EVERYBODY FREEZE! THIS IS A ROBBERY!”

Dixie knew exactly what to do in such a situation – after all, she’d been the ringleader of enough robberies in her lifetime. She hit the deck, trying to drag Juliet to the floor beside her. But the woman shook her off and then had the gall to step on her hand. Dixie glared up through her mussed curls, a confused oath on her lips, but Juliet only had eyes for the robber in the doorway.

Dixie threw him a glance, too; he was very tall, dressed all in black except for the blue bandanna pressed to his mouth and a dark grey hat tucked over greasy red flows of hair. He had two Colts clutched in his hands, which wavered as he tried to cover the entire room on his own. Juliet caught his eyes with a wave and a grin. “Hi, Charlie!” 

Charlie yanked down his bandana and glared. “Damn it, Juliet, you weren’t supposed to say my name!”

“Ooops, sorry!” She modestly tucked her skirts about her. “It’s my first robbery.”

“I can tell,” Dixie said.

Juliet crouched closer to her. “Sorry I dragged you into this,” she said. “But Charlie and me’re in a little jam, and there’s no way I can pay back the loan I took out to get the casino built...”

Charlie kicked impotently at the doorframe. “Dang it, Juliet, stop EXPLAINING stuff and start bagging the money!”

“Ooops!” She was on her feet, unstrapping a Derringer from her ankle and pointing it at the clerk beside Pete. “All right!” she yelled. “I want all the bills you got in the nearest unmarked delivery sack! MOVE!”

The other teller complied, but Pete struggled mightily with his draw. “Hell, Dix, I think it’s jammed,” she heard him hiss.

Dixie wasn’t about to get off the floor for a man who’d kidnapped her and nearly gotten her killed, but she raised her voice above a mutter so he could hear her. “Pete - what in the hell are you doing out here?”

“Dix, I know I’m a sparkling conversationalist, but now is not the time.”

Juliet arrived and jammed her gun through the teller’s window. “Now it’s your turn.”

Dixie heard Pete’s hand rattling around in the drawer. “I would, Miss, but I think it’s stuck!”

“Oh, come on, do you expect me to buy that?” Juliet’s fingertip tapped against the trigger. “Give me the dough or I’ll blow you away!”

“No, don’t! He’s already fifty percent lead!” Dixie cried.

Pete drew himself up and added with dignity, “Miss, the lady’s not entirely right on that account. I am ten percent lead with the addition of an iron plate over my solar plexus, which often leaves me feeling irritable and topsy-turvy.” 

“Good of you to let me know,” Juliet said. “I’ll be sure to shoot you in the head to even it out.”

“Can’t we talk this out civilly?” he asked. “I’ve got tickets to a cockfight tonight!”

“Save your civility for Saint Peter!” Juliet said, moving to squeeze the trigger.

But instead of a gun’s report, the next sound to rent the air came from Juliet’s lungs as she was tackled to the ground. Breathlessly, Dixie lurched over the woman’s body and reached for the gun; her fingers closed around Juliet’s wrist and squeezed the struggling woman’s flesh, clambering upward while every other muscle in her body worked to restrain Juliet. 

Just as Dixie’s fingers closed over the gun’s cool butt, a pain exploded across the back of her skull and everything went black.

*** 

The next thing Dixie heard was Charlie’s voice. “….riskin’ our investment like this.” She felt the rough pressure of a length of rope winding around her wrist and bit her lip to properly fool them. “Do you want to pull this robbery successfully off or not?”

Then it was Juliet, fully sarcastic, from behind her. “Of course. But please, Charlie, don’t be sore. You knew I didn’t know how to do it,” she said.

“Yeah, which is why I told you not to come with me.”

“And you know there was no way I could leave you be,” she said. “I love you too much for that.”

Charlie shoved his way out of Juliet’s clingy grip. “Good work damning the both of us to jail.”

“Well we’re not there yet!” she said. “But we do have one big problem – and he’s got ahold of our next thousand dollars ”. 

Charlie sighed. “That’s what’s wrong with this relationship, honey – you dream way too big.”

“Charlie, I’m risking my whole reputation on my faith in you. So go get a stick of butter and start slicking up that fella’s wrist.”

Dixie heard a muffled curse, followed by the sound of a door being dragged shut.

She exhaled and opened her eyes to get her bearings. Judging from the pain in her lower back and the one in her head, she’d been dragged hard – after her eyes adjusted to the light she realized she’d been pulled behind the teller’s window. The tightness of her bonds and the heat at her back told her the obvious – she’d been bound to Pete. A quick look over her shoulder told her that he was still stuck in the drawer.

“Would now be a good time for you to tell me how you ended up here?”

“Later,” he begged. “When we’re not being held hostage by the Unnatural Born Killers.”

She sighed. “Pete, you don’t have to lie to me. If you’re their fella on the inside, just say so.”

Pete frowned at her. “That is a slur on my integrity and my sterling manhood.”

Her voice turned to pure acid. “Aww, Pete. You forgot that I’ve seen your manhood.”

He cringed. “All right, you plumb wrung it out of me! I did the same thing you did, Dix. A life of wholesome criminal degradation wasn’t working out for me anymore. So, I asked my friend Sherif Viva and YOUR friend, Bah-ris-co, to give me a reference so I could get a decent job. Aaron said the best way to make a clean break from my illegal activities would be to get as far from San Francisco as I could comfortably afford.” He shrugged. “And so, here I am, trying to work my way back into Aaron’s good graces.”

“Work your way into Aaron’s good graces?” Dixie smiled. “Why Pete, you almost sound sweet on him.”

“Now is not the time to discuss my romantic peccadillos,” he whined. Pete’s eyes scoured the countertop, and then he yanked her body hard up against his back. “Do you know anything about telegraphs?”

“Only that they’re hard to flirt with,” she said. 

Pete stretched his free arm over his head. “Telegraph MACHINES, Dixie. The wire’s just over here.” Dixie looked over her shoulder; it was, indeed, a few inches from Pete’s fingers. “I can almost reach it.”

Dixie could do nothing more than lean into his back and encourage him. “Go on Pete! You’ve been through harder times than this!”

And make it he did – though he’d had to perch his boot against the middle of her rump to get there. His fingers scrabbled along the wire until it hit the receiver. “Who should I ring?”

“The jail!” 

“They don’t have a connection!” 

“Then try the town’s telegraph office!”

“That’s a fine idea but the nearest post is four miles away.” 

She moaned, and then she brightened. “We could try Brisco! Calling through Socrates’ office would work. It’s at Hill…”

“No need to say anything else, Dix – I know it by heart.” She squinted at him. “Mister Poole’s my other reference.”

“How many did you need?” Dixie’s own fingers were busy digging between the coiled knots of the rope that kept them bound together.

“As many as it took to get this fine job…” His voice wobbled. “Dix, what are you doing?” He squirmed and braced himself against the desk.

“Trying to get my hand on this knot!” She raised an eyebrow. “ I’m almost offended you didn’t ask me.”

“Dixie,” Pete said, tapping out the message at lightning speed, “you are a lady and a scholar, but if I’d’ve asked you you would’ve killed me.” 

“Oh, fine.” She gave the length a tug sharp enough to draw the knot tighter and make Pete gasp. “Finished?”

“Almost!” The tapping grew even more frantic.

She managed to work the knot in the opposite direction, diligently slipping it through the maze of tangles. Dix then noticed their surroundings – and that those surroundings were fairly barren of other forms of humanity. “Where did the other gals that were back here go?”

“Would you believe they let those two gals go? Said they weren’t useful.” Pete shook his head and his greasy locks brushed Dixie’s shoulders. “And they up and left. Loyalty’s a rare thing Dix, a rare, fine thing.” Just as he tapped out the last word, the door reopened, and Dixie yanked Pete back from the device.

Dixie jerked her head in the direction of Juliet and was rewarded by a brief wave of dizziness. The other woman stood at the employee exit, the Derringer still in her hand. She slowly stepped toward the middle of the room. “I sent Charlie down to the hotel to grab butter. We might as well chat until he comes back.”

“I don’t know where they taught you manners, but I don’t chit-chat with robbers,” Dixie said.

“Don’t you?” Juliet said. She up righted a chair and sat across from them, then started polishing the base of the gun with the hem of her sleeve. “I’ve read all about your past, Miss Cousins. Before you met Brisco you were quite the bad girl. Whenever one of those dime novels would come out I’d run down to the store and catch up on your little exploits. I used to idolize you.” She shook her head. “What happened?”

“I’d give you an autograph but I’m a little tied up right now,” Dixie replied airily. Then, more seriously she continued, “I knew there was something different about you. You weren’t just worried about the opening – you were too concerned about me. You wanted to make sure I was too happy to care about anything going on around me.”

Juliet smiled. “I knew enough about you to understand that if the robbery went south we could always try to ransom you. I bet County would pay a fine penny to make sure you don’t get hurt.” 

Dixie bristled. “Brisco’s too smart to fall for that trick!”

Juliet stiffened. “I don’t think this is a good time to put on airs about your lover, Miss Cousin. After all, you’re no better than me. You were some fella’s moll too – ain’t that right, Pete?” 

Pete hung his head as Dixie’s eyes fixed themselves upon the gun. She doubted Juliet’s aim was strong enough to actually land a successful shot, but tied to Pete she couldn’t possibly mount a successful defense. She had two things left at her disposal - her words and her wits. “You don’t have to do this, Juliet. You and Charlie can leave right now with the money you have,” Dixie said. “You could even throw it into the vault at the casino and nobody would ever notice.”

Juliet just scoffed. “You’re the same gal who led Big Smith’s gang all by yourself for months at a time. I trust you as far as I can throw you.”

Dixie said, “Why do you even need to rob a bank? The casino’s beautiful – the insurance money has to be worth something!”

“It’s also been ten thousand dollars in debt for over five years.” She shrugged. “I may have fibbed a tiny bit over how long we’ve been open. This place used to be the jewel of the western sky when my momma was around. I used to be her second in command.” Juliet shrugged. “Didn’t know anything else but show business, so I just paid attention to what she did, planning on taking everything over. It was doing all right when she died – so I thought it’d be easy to step into her shoes. I sunk every dollar I got from my momma’s will into that place, but no matter what I did everything turned sour. People just stopped showing up, and the kids my agewould rather ride to some other town with a better reputation. Then I met Charlie, and I fell in love. At first I felt awful, hanging around with a man like him. But he made me realize that I was born to be beside him – win or lose. Just like you are with Brisco. See, Charlie and I have a racket – I invite big-name talent into town, they play for a week, then when I pay them Charlie waits just outside of town and ambushes the stage out. Robs ‘em blind, but we don’t have a single body to our name. The extra money goes back into the till, along with anything we make off of the shows. Thanks to how big the circuit is, nobody’s ever the wiser.” She played with the chamber, her thumb rolling it back and forth. “But you had to be different, Dixie. You had to come with me to the bank. So me and Charlie had to improvise. I told you I’d never held a gun before.” 

“For somebody so smart,” Dixie observed. “You’re awful blind. You might be doing bad all by yourself, but Charlie’s just making the situation worse.” she asked.

“Now don’t you blame this on Charlie! It wasn’t even his idea. And anyway the world’s not filled with Briscos - we’ll get by together all right,” Juliet said.

“Until he gets locked up. What will you do if that happens? What will you tell yourself when you’re on your own?” Juliet hesitated at Dixie’s question. “That’s what the dime novel fellas don’t tell you. It’s damn hard being a divorcee. Being a scarlet woman’s only a sight better. I don’t give a damn about what anybody thinks, but I do give a damn about finding my next meal and getting a roof over my head. I didn’t turn to robbing ‘cause it was fun…” She wrinkled her nose, feeling Pete’s eyes on her. “Even though it was fun. I turned to it because I was fresh out of the convent and I couldn’t do anything but sew and sing. You’ve got more smarts right now than I had at your age. You could take that place and turn it into a miracle. Think about what your mother would want. Think about what the people who work for you would want! ” Her long speech afforded her plenty of time to get her hands on the knot again, and let her work it even looser.

“Sorry, Dixie,” said Juliet. “But I’ve had too many spoiled fresh starts. This is my last chance, and I’m gonna take it. Me and Charlie will burn down the casino tonight, then we’ll sneak out of town. With the cash we have we’ll have a fine start some other place.” Her finger thumbed the trigger. “And the only thing standing between it and us is you.”

As if talking about him had conjured him, Charlie and his butter appeared at the back door. “I had to dig through twenty crates,” he complained, striding up to Pete, then hunkering down by the register and reaching for Pete’s wrist. 

“Charlie,” said Juliet. “I’ve been thinking. Maybe the ransom isn’t worth it, after all. We can just shove them in the casino before we burn it down. They ain’t worth the extra trouble. After all, what are they gonna do to stop us now?”

After a moment of silence, Dixie felt Pete’s body jerk against hers, then heard a grunt from Charlie - he staggered backward, holding his nose. She realized that Pete had been bluffing about his stuck hand two seconds before the ropes finally gave. Juliet charged toward her, and then Dixie forgot to do anything but swing her right hand at the woman’s jaw, sending Juliet sprawling and the pistol skittering beyond the woman’s reach, smacking into the upturned leg of a chair.

The gun went off under the sudden impact; Pete howled as one of the bullets lodged in his shoulder, the pain giving him an extra rush of adrenalin, letting him pick up the register and smash it over Charlie’s head while Dixie grabbed the gun and held it on Juliet.

“This may be your first time, honey,” Dixie said. “But you know what they say about fine wine. The more age it gets, the better it is.”

Dixie let out a sigh of relief as she took stock of the situation; two downed criminals, two standing semi-good-guys. Grabbing Charlie’s foot, she dragged him a few inches closer, then bent and started to tie the two lovers together with the severed ends of rope. Pete stood back, holding his shoulder. “What did they teach you in that convent?” he wondered, staring at the dazed twosome.

“I didn’t learn THAT in a convent. I thought you were reformed!” 

“When it comes to affairs of lethal force, I believe in a direct approach,” Pete said.

Dixie finished her handiwork. “You’d better get the sheriff,” she said. “I think Charlie’s direct approach will end with you being the thirty percent lead man next time.” 

But the cavalry arrived before Pete could stagger toward the door, having been alerted by the gunshot. Pete raised his hands in preemptive surrender, but Dixie quickly prepared herself for the press coverage she knew would ensue. She smoothed her skirts down and rested a fist upon her hip as she surveyed the chaos. “I don’t suppose you fellas know where a lady can get a drink?”

***

By the time Brisco and Bowler roared into town, Pete had been to the town doctor, Dixie had been paid what she was owed by the casino – which was now the town’s property - and Juliet and Charlie were safely ensconced in the nearest jail. Over a steak dinner with all three men, Dixie animatedly told the story. Brisco’s eyes glowed in amazement as she related every last detail, then sat back, satisfied and proud. It wasn’t as interesting as meeting a naked lady from the future, but it was worth a whole dime novel chapter at the very least.

“Very fancy," he exclaimed. "I still don’t believe you and PETE stopped the heist,” Brisco said.

“And why not?” Pete asked. “I used to be the fourth fastest gun in the south.” He mimed drawing a gun, only to wince and grab for his shoulder.

“Heh-heh-heh,” snorted Bowler, who ignored Brisco’s frown as he slapped a heavy arm around Pete’s shoulders. “You just might be good for something yet, Hutter.”

“I just hope that something isn’t cheating the fine people of Grey Harbor out of their hard-earned money,” Brisco said.

“I think that title’s all Juliet’s,” said Dixie.

Brisco said, “And thanks to the two of you she’s been stopped. I still don’t know what possesses a gal like that to ruin her future. She sounded smart enough to do anything she wanted to do with her life.”

“She was. But don’t cry for her never-bes yet. You never know if she might reform herself,” Dixie said.

“Reform?!” cried all the fellas together, who automatically started blurting out a laundry list of reasons why Juliet didn’t belong in normal society.

“Boys,” Dixie said, authoritatively silencing them by standing at the table. “I’m gonna take a long walk and let you think about how downright foolish you all sound. Now if any of you would like to join me…”

Brisco grinned, slicking back his hair. “I’d be honored - if you’ll forgive what I just said.”

“Of course. After all,” Dixie said, locking eyes with Pete, “everybody deserves a second chance.” She gave Bowler and Pete an outrageous wink as she linked arms with Brisco and strolled out of the restaurant and into the golden white moonlight.

**Author's Note:**

> This fanfiction uses characters from **The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.** , all of whom are the property of the **Fox Network**. No money was gained from the writing of this fanfiction and all are used under the strictures of of the Berne Convention.


End file.
